Who was the first president of Uganda?

Mutesa II, King of Buganda, was the first president of Uganda after its official declaration of independence in 1962. Mutesa's full name was Sir Edward Frederick William David Walugembe Mutebi Luwangula Mutesa.

In the 1940s, Mutesa was a figurehead monarch, referred to as "King Freddie," by Western media. While he was allowed to keep his title until 1953, the year in which he was deposed by the British, he and his nation were under British rule. 

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Mutesa II, King of Buganda, was the first president of Uganda after its official declaration of independence in 1962. Mutesa's full name was Sir Edward Frederick William David Walugembe Mutebi Luwangula Mutesa.

In the 1940s, Mutesa was a figurehead monarch, referred to as "King Freddie," by Western media. While he was allowed to keep his title until 1953, the year in which he was deposed by the British, he and his nation were under British rule. 

During his presidency, Mutesa's prime minister was Milton Obote. In 1966, Obote seized power from Mutesa in a coup. The purpose of the coup was to abolish Uganda's tribal kingdoms, in the interest of creating a unified nation with a centralized government. Buganda, the land that Mutesa claimed as his own, was a traditional kingdom within central Uganda. Buganda is the home of the Ganda tribe.

In the 1950s, Mutesa had supported the secession of Buganda from the rest of Uganda. It is possible that Obote supported Mutesa's presidency with the hope of gaining the support of the Ganda people and integrating them into a unified Uganda. Once that was accomplished, Obote could seize power and lead the newly independent nation.

However, Mutesa was uncooperative and stubbornly refused efforts to incorporate Buganda into Uganda. He pitted "northern" Ugandans and "southern" Bugandans against each other. This led to conflict and Mutesa's eventual exile to Britain in 1966. 

Five years later, the notorious Idi Amin came to rule by military coup and held Uganda in a grip of terror during the 1970s. Obote returned to power in 1980, but was deposed by yet another military coup in 1985.